Prevalence of Bartonella henselae in Italian Stray Cats: Evaluation of Serology To Assess the Risk of Transmission of Bartonella to Humans

Abstract

Bartonella henselae is the major etiological agent of cat scratch disease in humans. Cats act as the natural reservoir of B. henselae and can transmit the infection to humans by a bite or scratch. The prevalence of B. henselae in cat populations was evaluated by serological and bacteriological tests. A total of 769 stray cats from three urban and three rural areas in northern Italy were sampled between January 1999 and December 2000. The positive and the negative predictive values of serological tests with respect to bacteremic status were evaluated. Tests of a total of 140 cats (18%) resulted in detection of bacteremia. A total of 540 cats were tested by serology; 207 (38%) were seropositive. Of the 531 cats tested by both methods, the results for 65 (12.2%) showed both bacteremia detection and seropositivity. The molecular typing of the isolates showed that 20.6% of bacteremic cats were infected with B. henselae type I strain, 61.1% were infected with B. henselae type II, and 18.3% were coinfected with both. A statistically significant difference in antibody and bacteremia prevalences among geographical areas was detected. Statistical analysis showed no association between characteristics such as seroprevalencebacteremic status, sex, general health status, and the presence of ectoparasites. The negative predictive value of serological test was 84.7%, and the positive predictive value was 31.8%. Receiving operator characteristic analysis of the data showed that serological tests had a low predictive value in relation to the bacteremic status of a cat; in surveys aimed at assessing the real risk of B. henselae infection in a human population, therefore, we suggest the use of blood culture as the reference test. Nevertheless, both blood culture assays and serological tests for Bartonella infection should be performed for a complete evaluation of the health status of cats.Although cat scratch disease (CSD) was recognized in 1930 and first reported in 1950 by Debrè et al. (8), the etiological agent was identified only in 1992 when Bartonella henselae was definitely associated with CSD in humans (23,24). Several years later, another Bartonella species, B. clarridgeiae, was identified as a causative agent of CSD in humans (20,21). Cats act as a natural reservoir of the bacteria and can transmit Bartonella to humans by a scratch or bite. Bartonella infection in cats is usually not characterized by clinical manifestations, but infected cats can remain bacteremic for long periods, thus playing a major role as a reservoir for the bacteria (5, 19). The cat flea, Ctenocephalides felis felis, plays an important role in cat-to-cat transmission of the infection (7,10,18). A similar role may also be played by ticks (Ixodes pacificus) (4).Epidemiological studies worldwide have shown a high level of variability of Bartonella seroprevalence in cats. Seroprevalence levels ranging from 1 to 8.5% in Germany and Switzerland (1,12,15) and up to 56% in The Netherlands (2) and 81% in California (6) have been found. In Europe, the highes...

Human bartonellosis: seroepidemiological and clinical features with an emphasis on data from Brazil - A review

“…Seroprevalence in cats varies from 14 to 50 % across studies, and it has been reported that cats may have persistent and asymptomatic bacteremia (Koehler et al 1994, Baneth et al 1996, Bergmans et al 1997, Chomel et al 1999, 2006a, b, Hjelm et al 2002, Fabbi et al 2004. A study by Slhessarenko et al (1996) on the seroprevalence of cats in the city of São Paulo, Brazil, revealed 46% sero-reactivity to Bartonella spp.…”

Genome Rearrangements, Deletions, and Amplifications in the Natural Population of Bartonella henselae

“…Both genotypes are present worldwide, but the Marseille genotype appears to be dominant in the European cat population, whereas the Houston-1 genotype is more common in Asia (7). However, the relative prevalence of the two genotypes in felines also shows regional variations (23,31,33).…”

Feline bartonellosis· A review

“…Επιζωοτιολογικές μελέτες διεςήχθηκαν κυρίως σε κλινικά υγιείς γάτες (κατοικίδιες και αδέσποτες) και αφορούσαν αφενός στη συχνότητα λοίμωξης με την άμεση ανίχνευση του βακτηρίου, κυρίως σε καλλιέρ γειες αίματος, η οποία στη συνέχεια επιβεβαιώθηκε με τη βοήθεια μοριακών μεθόδων (PCR-RFLP) ταυ-τοποιώντας παράλληλα το υπεύθυνο είδος, στέλεχος και γενότυπο του βακτηρίου (Chomel et al 1995, Bergmans et al 1997, Heller et al 1997, Sander et al 1997, Chomel et al 1999, Marston et al 1999, Arvand et al 2001, Chomel et al 2002, La Scola et al 2002, Avidor et al 2004, Engback et al 2004, Fabbi et al 2004, Rolain et al 2004, Crissiuma et al 2011 και αφετέρου στη συχνότητα έκθεσης στο βακτήριο με την ανίχνευση ειδικών αντισωμάτων με ορολογι κές εξετάσεις (έμμεσος ανοσοφθορισμός και ELISA) (Al-Majali, 2004, Baneth et al 1996, Bergmans et al 1997, Childs et al 1995, Chomel et al 1995, Chomel et al 1999, Chomel et al 2002, Crissiuma et al 2011, Ebani et al 2002, Glaus et al 1997, Fabbi et al 2004, Gurfield et al 2001, lljclm et al 2002, Kelly et al 1996, Leighton et al 2001, Maruyama et al 2003, Nutter et ah 2004, Podsiadly et al 2003, SolanoGallcgo et al 2006, Ueno et al 1995.…”

“…Στην Ευρώπη και τη Βόρεια Αμερική επικρατεί ο γενότυπος Marseille type 11 της Β. henselae (Birtlcs et al 2002, Chomel et al 2002, Fabbi et al 2004, Montcil et al 2007), ενώ στην Ασία ο Houston 1 (type I) (Chomel et al 1999, Maruyama et al 2000, Maruyama et al 2001). …”

“…Τέλος, παρατηρούνται σημαντικές διαφορές στη συχνότητα μόλυνσης μετα ξύ κατοικίδιων και αδέσποτων γατών. Οι ορολογικές αλλά και οι μοριακές μέθοδοι έδειξαν ότι η συχνότητα μόλυνσης είναι μεγαλύτερη στις γάτες που παρασιτού-νται από ψύλλους αλλά και στις αδέσποτες συγκριτικά με τις κατοικίδιες (Kochlcr et al 1994, Chomel et al 1995, Baneth et al 1996, Branley et al 1996, Heller et al 1997, Chomel et al 1999, Marston et al 1999, Gurfield et al 2001, Cabassi et al 2002, Chomel et al 2002, Ebani et al 2002, Al-Majali 2004, Fabbi et al 2004, Guptill et al 2004, Nutter et al 2004, Pinna Parpaglia et al 2007). Αυτό πιθανώς εξηγείται από το ότι οι περισσότερες κατοικίδιες γάτες συνήθως ζουν σε ελεγχόμενο και καθαρό από ψύλλους περιβάλλον, αφού συχνά διενεργούνται αποπαρασιτισμοί.…”